1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to the transmission of data between devices having a limited short-range audio communication link and, particularly, to a system and method for transmitting data over an audio communication link using audio tones.
2. Description of the Related Art
Modern mobile phones offer advanced capabilities, often with PC-like functionality. Such mobile devices often include powerful processors, abundant memory, large screens and complex operating systems. In many cases, these mobile devices include various applications and store considerable user data. Users often find themselves needing to transfer information to and from these mobile devices to other nearby devices, such as laptops, personal computers, other mobile devices, etc.
Many mobile devices employ Bluetooth technology to communicate with nearby devices. Bluetooth is a wireless telecommunications technology that provides an open standard for short-range wireless transmission of digital voice and data between mobile devices, such as laptops, personal digital assistants (PDAs), phones, desktop devices, etc. Each Bluetooth-enabled device includes a radio transceiver and operates in a globally-available frequency band. Furthermore, use of the Bluetooth technology can be limited by the mobile device provider to specific categories of use called profiles.
FIGS. 1A and 1B illustrate two examples of how Bluetooth communications may be used to enable communication between a mobile device and another device.
In FIG. 1A, mobile device 10 communicates with a Bluetooth enabled ear piece 30 over an audio link 20. In order to use Bluetooth technology, a device must be compatible with certain Bluetooth profiles, which define the possible applications for the technology. For example, different Bluetooth profiles exist for wireless communication between a mobile phone and a hands-free headset, wireless communication with PC input and output devices (e.g., mouse and keyboard), wireless communication for data transfer, etc. Accordingly, in FIG. 1A, audio link 20 between mobile device 10 and wireless ear piece 30 uses a Bluetooth profile for wireless communication between a mobile phone and a hands-free headset. This Bluetooth profile is limited to the transmission of audio tones. In addition, the mobile device 10 may be further limited to the uses set forth by a service provider associated with the mobile device or manufacturer of the mobile device.
In FIG. 1B, mobile device 10 communicates with a Bluetooth enabled laptop 35 over a file transfer link 25. In this example, file transfer link 25, between mobile device 10 and laptop 35, uses the Bluetooth profile for wireless file transfer. This profile provides for digital data transfer, but not for transferring audio streams.
While Bluetooth has certain advantages over cellular networks with respect to short-range communication, many cellular service providers limit the use of their Bluetooth enabled devices to specific profiles or limited specific uses within profiles. This forces subscribers to pay for wireless data plans or pay for data transfer on a per MB basis. For example, the current iPhone™, manufactured by Apple™, may have Bluetooth technology limited to audio-only communications. Accordingly, users may be unable to transfer data using the Bluetooth communication link except via a cellular network.
FIG. 1C illustrates an example of a communication path between mobile device 10 and laptop 35 via the cellular network in the absence of an available Bluetooth profile for data transfer. In FIG. 1C, data from the mobile device 10 must travel over cellular interface 50 to a nearby cellular tower 55. From cellular tower 55, the data must reach and be processed by the service provider 60, which then communicates the data over the interne 70 to laptop 35. As such, users of mobile devices may be unable to transfer data between their mobile devices and other nearby devices without transmitting the data through the cellular service provider, thereby incurring data transfer charges or paying for expensive data plans. Furthermore, in the case where a cellular signal is weak or absent, users of mobile devices may be completely unable to transfer data between their mobile devices and other nearby devices.
Consequently, there is a need for a method and system that would allow a user to transfer data to and from a mobile device using a Bluetooth technology, in cases where the Bluetooth technology is restricted or otherwise limited to audio tone transmissions.